AMM is a British free improvisation group, founded in London, England in 1965.

AMM have never been well-known to the general public, but have been, in their own way, hugely influential on several
generations ofadventurous musicians. AMM has been called “legendary” and “groundbreaking.” They are notable as the perhaps
the first musical group todeliberately try to make music not related to any established musical genre: as Michael Nyman wrote,
“AMM seem to have worked without thebenefit or hindrance of any kind of prepared external discipline. ” In a 2001 interview, ...read more

AMM is a British free improvisation group, founded in London, England in 1965.

AMM have never been well-known to the general public, but have been, in their own way, hugely influential on several
generations ofadventurous musicians. AMM has been called “legendary” and “groundbreaking.” They are notable as the perhaps
the first musical group todeliberately try to make music not related to any established musical genre: as Michael Nyman wrote,
“AMM seem to have worked without thebenefit or hindrance of any kind of prepared external discipline. ” In a 2001 interview,
founding member Keith Rowe was asked if “AMM” was anabbreviation; he replied, “The letters AMM stand for something, but as
you probably know it’s a secret!” There is an unconfirmed story that oneof the group’s members told John Stevens, in a
confidence that Stevens failed to keep, that the letters stood for Art, Music, Madness.AMM was initially composed of Keith
Rowe on guitar, Lou Gare on saxophone and Eddie Prévost on drums. Rowe and Gare were members ofMike Westbrook’s band;
Prevost and Gare were also in a hard bop jazz quintet. The three men shared a common interest in exploring musicbeyond the
boundaries of conventional jazz, as part of a larger movement that helped spawn European free jazz and free improvisation. No
AMMperformance was ever planned; each was unique and spontaneous. The musicians tended to avoid any conventional
melody, harmony or rhythm,and further sought an ensemble sound that often obscured any individual’s role. « hide